The small business marketing checklist: 5 easy, free ways to spread the word about your company

You’ve got your new company name, you got a logo you love. Ideally, you’ve given some thought to your brand: what makes you different and memorable, as well as how your product or service fits the needs of its target audience.

Now it’s time to reach prospective customers. We know you’re busy getting your business off the ground and perfecting your product. At 99designs, we’re all about removing obstacles for busy entrepreneurs. That’s why we’ve created this list specifically for small business owners with tight budgets and precious little time.

Here are five easy ways to spread the word out about your awesome product, without breaking the bank.

1. Put your name, logo and contact information on every single touchpoint with the outside world
—

It’s not enough to put your logo on your website, especially when you’re first starting out. You have to make it incredibly easy for people to remember you and find you on the world wide web, and that means always being one click away when interacting with your audience.

It sounds so simple, yet it’s often an overlooked step. Here are four places you can put your information.

Your packaging (pro tip:stickers or tape can be an affordable stop gap)

Note: This won’t be the marketing tactic that catapults your business into the stratosphere (unless you’re incredibly lucky, or you have some very famous friends), but when you’re first starting out, it’s an important first step. Not only does it establish your business as “real” to your contacts in the outside world, but it’s the very first step in helping people remember your name and growing word of mouth for your business. Without this step, your next efforts may go to waste.

2. Start a blog and write about what you know (as it relates to your business)
—

Content marketing and search engine optimization. Those are things only big fancy companies with big fancy marketing departments do, right? We’ve got good news for you. You can create ablogthat will help improve your search engine ranking for free. No coding wizardry needed. And better search engine rankings means more visitors and more customers. Here’s a super simple guide to get you started.

Not sure what to write about? Put yourself in your customers’ shoes.

What sorts of things are they searching for? Create a list of questions your customer might be asking that you can use your expertise to answer.

Then go ahead and Google the questions on your list. If you can’t find any articles right away, you’ve found your opportunity.

3. Start communicating on social
—

Approximately three-quarters of shoppers today will research a company online before making a purchase. Companies can no longer expect their target customer to take them at their word. One of the easiest ways for your customer to determine your credibility is to check you out on social. Need more proof? Currently, one in every ten online purchases around the world originates from social media channels. The good news is, you can get started for free.

Managing several social media channels as a small business owner can seem daunting. We don’t recommend being on every channel right away, since it can be a lot to manage. Start with the channel that’s most relevant to your business and expand from there once you feel ready. Here’s a helpful guide by industry.

Once you have your channels, it’s time to start posting. Here are a few reallyhelpful tips to get you started, no matter which channel you’re focusing on.

Have a wellspring of patience, and a knack for navigating websites that some may find maddening? You might be uniquely qualified to tackle Redditas a marketer, which puts you ahead of the game. Here’s agreat beginners guide to Reddit, when you’re ready.

Are you running a local business? Check out Alignable, the free network where business owners meet to increase word of mouth marketing and generate referrals.

4. Start building your email list
—

Email remains one of the most cost-effective channels for marketing departments all around the world. Don’t believe us? According to the Direct Marketing Association, Email marketing yields an average 4,300% return on investment for businesses in the United States. And companies using email to nurture leads generate 50% more sales-ready leads at 33% lower cost. And nurtured leads, on average, produce a 20% increase in sales opportunities compared to non-nurtured leads, according to Hubspot.

Not sure what to send? Here are a few types of emails you can send, depending on your audience and offering:

A weekly newsletter with top posts from your blog, or other content most relevant to your email audience

A promotional email with discounts or special offerings on your product

Product updates or company announcements

Just like your blog, email marketing is most effective when you put yourself in your customer’s shoes, and focus on their wants, needs, concerns, and questions when it comes to your business. Pay attention to your favorite brands and your competitors. What emails are you most likely to read? What makes you take action? And like the rest of your branded materials, emails to your customers and prospects should always look professional. Here are some free templates to get you started.

5. Get Creative
—

When ridesharing app Lyft first got started, they printed their logo and a coupon code on coasters. They sent their small staff to bars in the few cities they were operating, and sat back as they watched their app downloads soar.

Airbnb got their site free distribution by coding a set of tools that made it possible for every user to cross-post their Airbnb listing on Craigslist. These specific examples of guerrilla marketing won’t necessarily work for your business or industry, but if you put your own creative thinking cap on, you might find your own ingenious way of growing word of mouth for your business for next to nothing.

—

Remember, you don’t necessarily have to tackle all of these tips at once. Do one thing thoughtfully every day, and watch your business grow bit by bit. Don’t expect overnight success, but if something you’re doing isn’t working, tweak it or try something new. Take every failure and apply the learnings. Good luck!

For more resources to help your business grow, check out our featured partners page forspecial deals and discounts for 99designs customers.

The author

Lindsey works on Organic Marketing and PR at 99designs. Before joining 99designs, Lindsey spent 10 years managing brands big and small, and helped launch a local clothing brand with her husband in 2013. Lindsey loves helping small businesses find success through affordable branding and useful marketing content. When she's not working, Lindsey spends most of her time trying to make her kid laugh.

Any comments?

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Kate

Oct 10 2016

This is a great resource you’ve compiled, Lindsey! I like that you started with the basics (contact info!) first…so many similar posts start with “write a blog” which really shouldn’t be the first thing a company does.